


The Unlucky Cat Cafe

by mariuspunmercy



Category: Big Hero 6: The Series (Cartoon)
Genre: Chapters are short, F/M, No Fake Dating, This may turn into a fake dating au, idk i haven't decided yet, it gets angsty at times, karmiro, okay ive decided
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-18
Updated: 2018-12-24
Packaged: 2019-06-29 03:39:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 20
Words: 12,675
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15721221
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mariuspunmercy/pseuds/mariuspunmercy
Summary: Aunt Cass hires Karmi to work at the lucky cat cafe.Let's just say that Hiro and Karmi aren't exactly excited to discover that they will be spending more time together.





	1. Chapter One

“Hiro?” Aunt Cass poked her head into Hiro’s room. 

Having no classes today, the young boy hadn't gone outside of his room all day. He was busy at work, trying to figure out what was happening with Obake. 

“Yes?” Hiro answered politely. He covered the paper he was writing on with his arm as he turned to face his aunt. 

“I just hired a new employee. She's around your age, and goes to SFIT. I want you guys to meet. She's waiting downstairs.”

This was a first. Aunt Cass doesn't usually hire other people. She has to be really busy for her to have anyone that isn't herself running the cafe. 

“Coming.” Hiro folded his paper in half. He, lazily, got out of his chair. 

“She's a really nice girl…” But Aunt Cass’s voice was soon drowned out when he saw who was grabbing the mugs of coffee and delivering them to customers. 

When she turned around to face Cass and Hiro, the mug dropped to the floor. 

Hiro’s jaw dropped to the floor. “Karmi?” He was completely astonished, yet suddenly aware of how messed up his hair was by not doing it all day. 

“Hiro? You're her nephew?” Karmi bent down to pick up the pieces from the broken glass. Her eyes didn't leave Hiro. 

“You've already met, great.” Aunt Cass clapped her hands together. “You'll be seeing a lot more of each other, so get used to it.”

They both turned to each other. Hiro flashed his rival a mischievous smile. Her face dropped from the floor. 

“So, Aunt Cass, can you tell me what Karmi will be working?” He continued smirking as Karmi arose from her spot on the floor. 

“Bringing the customers whatever they ordered.” Cass didn't notice the tension between the two friends. “She'll be a little waitress.”

“Uh huh.” Hiro crossed his arms as his smile achieved the ‘Little Shit’ smirk. “Should be fun.”

“Please, keep conversing you two beautiful butterflies. Have fun, and don't make out when I'm not looking.”

They both started blushing profoundly, and Karmi even accidentally cut herself with a broken shard of the mug. She walked away before Hiro could bring Baymax from upstairs. 

“This is going to be…” Hiro didn't finish his sentence he spoke to himself as he watched Aunt Cass give him finger guns.


	2. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Aunt Cass is literally the reason that a war is stopped.

“Listen, Hamada.” Karmi sat across from him at a booth as Hiro his his paper. Still trying to crack the Obake thing. 

“Listening.” Hiro raised his coffee to his mouth. He had been downstairs at the cafe since Aunt Cass dragged him down. It's closing now, and he's dying of sleep deprivation. 

“Look,” her eyes softened: a look Hiro had seen only once when she was kicked out of Trengrove’s presentation. “I'll play nice if you do.”

Hiro almost dropped his cup. Was Karmi really going to be nice to him? He saw Aunt Cass behind Karmi, a wide smile and giving a thumbs up. 

“Aunt Cass wants me to find somebody so I'm not lonely anymore.” Hiro sighed. “I have the gang, but she wants me to find somebody to have a relationship with.”

Karmi’s eyes widened. “Oh…”

“But,” Hiro glanced at his paper that was hidden next to him. He does this superhero thing to protect people like her. Like Karmi. Aunt Cass. “At school we still get to murder each other.”

“Deal.” Karmi held her hand out. “But, make your aunt happy.”

“I'll try.” Hiro shook her hand. “I just gotta come up with stories about us to please Aunt Cass.”

“Karmi, your heart rate has-”

“OH HI, BAYMAX!” Karmi shouted upon the robot entering. 

“You're meeting the adorable kids, Baymax.” Aunt Cass swung her arm around the robot. 

Both of the adorable kids groaned, wanting more than anything to get up and leave. Yet, they both stayed for Aunt Cass.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let's be real, if it weren't for Aunt Cass here, they would've had a screaming match already. 
> 
> Follow my Tumblr - varianneedsabaymaxhug
> 
> :)


	3. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Did you peeps wanna see Aunt Cass teasing Hiro?? O well here it is.

“I take it that you and Karmi are getting along?” Aunt Cass asked as soon as the young employee walked out of the cafe. 

Getting along isn't a term that most would use to describe Hiro and Karmi. But, the whole act was for his aunt. He was going to have to make some stuff up 

“We've been getting along plenty before she was hired.” Hiro plastered the best fake smile that he could. “Professor Granville paired us for a week because we're geniuses and all. We kinda just went from there.”

Aunt Cass sat down at the booth, the same place Karmi had been sitting not ten minutes ago. “She seems like a really nice girl. What else is there to know about her?”

Nice? Karmi? Hiro wanted to laugh. Nice wasn't a word to describe her. At all. She still held the accidental stool that was thrown at her against him. 

“She's really nice.” Hiro hoped his voice was even. “She's a biotech major. We really support each other. Like that time Trengrove kicked us out of his presentation.”

“You're friends with a nice, pretty, and smart girl.” Aunt Cass clapped. “This is amazing.”

Nice. Pretty. Smart. Hiro could only deny one of those nouns that Aunt Cass used to describe Karmi. He wasn't going to admit which one. 

“It is amazing.” He remembered what Granville had told him about his emotional state. “I was going through something, being the youngest person there. But, Karmi, being there for me because she knew what I was going through, made it so much better.”

Baymax stood in the kitchen, washing dishes. “I am unable to understand why Karmi was embarrassed.”

“Young girls are like that, Baymax. They get embarrassed around cute boys." Aunt Cass looked at Hiro as she spoke, indicating that she wasn't really talking to Baymax. 

“I will have to upgrade my program so I can understand teenage girls.” Baymax put the plates down and made his way upstairs. 

“No program is going to help Baymax understand teenage girls.” That was one of the truest things that Hiro had said all evening. He was a genius and didn't understand girls. Even Go Go and Honey Lemon were hard to read sometimes.

Karmi believed that he had stolen her place as the youngest student on purpose. Is there programming to make her see that that wasn't true? 

“Programming can't help, but a girl that was once a teenager is better than nothing.” Aunt Cass pretended to throw her hair over her shoulder. 

“You're right. I'll ask Go Go and Honey Lemon.” Hiro joked. Aunt Cass smacked him upside the head playfully. “I'm kidding.”

“So, when are things going to start happening?” 

Hiro got up from the table. Nothing is going to happen between him and his sworn enemy. The blush on his face probably told Aunt Cass different, but anyone would be embarrassed at their aunt’s trying to get them together with their enemy. 

Right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aunt Cass is a goddess, lbr. 
> 
> Follow my Tumblr - varianneedsabaymaxhug
> 
> :)


	4. Chapter Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Who doesn't like two arguing kids??

“I can't fucking stand you right now.” Hiro growled. 

“Well, at least that's one thing that we can agree on.” Karmi responded. 

“A young boy at your age should not use that kind of language.” Baymax reminded. 

Granville had paired them up on another project. The professor obviously had little knowledge as to the fact that the two teens dislike each other. 

“How did we get here?” Hiro sighed at the papers and materials littering his lab. The papers were filled with equations upon plans about their project. 

“I don't know.” Karmi checked her phone. “But, I have at least two hours before I gotta go to work so we better agree on something other than not being able to stand each other.”

The project was one that Hiro had already passed on. To make a building that could withstand a nine point zero or higher on the Richter Scale. 

Apparently, Hiro’s design was good, but everyone believed he could do better with a partner around. Thus, the pairing was introduced. 

“Well, can we at least agree that my last idea wasn't so stupid, then?” Hiro argued, picking a paper off of his desk. 

“Your brother did the exact same thing.” Karmi grabbed the paper from him. “We are not going to do the same thing as somebody from the past.”

“We're geniuses.” Hiro threw his hands into the air. “Why can't we do this?”

Karmi groaned. “Maybe working on this more when my shift ends could help us.”

She had a point. They would force themselves to be nicer to each other. That, and add the coffee and blueberry scones that Aunt Cass sold. 

“Can't argue with that.” Hiro noticed a discarded paper on the floor with an equation that actually made sense. “So, it's a date then?”

Hiro didn't even notice his poor choice of words. He continued to stare at the girl whose face was slowly turning the shade of a strawberry. 

“We are going to work on a project when my shift ends because we have to be nice to each other for your Aunt Cass.” Karmi sounded like she was reminding herself about this. 

“Okay, that's happening.” Hiro showed the paper he had previously picked up. “You know what else is happening? This perfectly logical design.”

“Oh my-” Karmi slammed her head into the desk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The cussing may be a bit much, but idc cause it's 3 am and I wanna sleep now. 
> 
> Follow my Tumblr - varianneedsabaymaxhug
> 
> :)


	5. Chapter Five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Karmi may finally admit why she is the way she is. 
> 
> Or, she continues being a rock.

The cafe was dead silent. 

The reason for that being that Hiro and Karmi can't yell at each other. Aunt Cass and Baymax were in the kitchen, putting the dishes in their respective places. 

“I'm going to scream the second I can.” Hiro said with a smile on his face and his voice low. “I'm going to scream because my designs all work.”

“They do not work,” Karmi was holding a fork in her hand a little too hard. “Because you did the equation wrong.”

“Bio tech majors get free ice cream. Maybe you should go with Aunt Cass and get some.”

“I'm not falling for that again.”

Hiro was exhausted. Nothing seems to be working. He doesn't want to admit it, but his equations aren't working. He doesn't know what to do 

“At least we aren't yelling at each other.” Hiro reminded. He sighed, and put his head into his hands. “School has never been this hard for me.”

“I get it.” Karmi put the fork down. “I was the same. Always smarter than everybody until I got here.” Her face fell in a frown. “Sometimes, I wonder if that was a good thing.”

The way her face suggested sadness… Hiro wonders. Had something happened to her that she was ashamed of being smart? Why did she seem upset? 

Usually, Karmi liked to remind everybody about how smart she was. She showed pride in that. Why was this time any different from all the other times?

Karmi’s face lit up as her phone beeped. “Big Hero Six news alert.” She pulled her phone out. “I'll come back later.” 

Hiro let her go. She genuinely got happy hearing about Big Hero Six. Something about her long face made Hiro want to make her happy, no matter if the project was on the line.  
“Oh, crap.” Hiro momentarily forgot that he was part of a superhero team. He pulled Baymax from the kitchen, and didn't listen to Aunt Cass’s concerns. 

“I have soap on my hands.” Baymax informed.  
“Doesn't matter.” Hiro told him as he took his robot outside the cafe. “We have a job to do.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this on a car ride home. At midnight. I think that explains a lot. 
> 
> Follow me on tumblr - varianneedsabaymaxhug :)


	6. Chapter Six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Look, it's a fight scene!

“Who is it today?” Hiro asked Go-Go as he arrived at the location (a random ATM) Honey Lemon had sent him. 

“Globby.” Go-Go answers, skating towards the glob. 

“Of course it is.” Hiro had to rip himself away from his project when he and Karmi weren't ready to kill each other for Globby? It didn't seem worth it. 

“Hiro, back me up here.” Wasabi was walking around the building surrounding the ATM. Hiro hopped off of Baymax and followed Wasabi. His robot followed him. 

“Baymax, scan for Globby.” Hiro watched the growing crowd start forming, all trying to get a good view of the team of superheroes. 

“I am unable to scan for Globby.” Baymax informed. 

“Scan jammers. Damn.” Wasabi says under his breath. 

“Where is he?” Fred says over the coms. 

Hiro freezes when he sees who else is in the crowd. He really shouldn't be surprised. He already knew that Karmi was on her way over when she left the cafe. 

“Why is she here?” Hiro complained. He didn't really mean it. Yeah, he wasn't the biggest fan of her, but he still didn't see her as an annoyance. 

“Because she likes you.” Fred teased. 

“Oh, shut up.” Hiro smiled as he rolled his eyes. At least Karmi didn't know his secret identity. 

Except, Hiro couldn't help but keep stealing glances at her. He didn't stop looking over at her to see if she was still okay, and to make sure that she wasn't hurt. 

“What are you looking at?” Hiro didn't have to turn around to see who was talking. He knew that it was Globby. Globby is still trying to get into his head. 

“Nothing.” Hiro squeaked as he turned to face the monster. 

“Huh, okay. Weirdo.” Globby let out a chuckle.   
But he kept looking. Hiro was distracted as Globby’s fist changed into a metal hammer and wacked Baymax. Which meant Hiro was sent flying with him. 

“I'll be back when you aren't being weird.” Globby announced. “This is boring. I wanted to fight. Your leader is boring. You really are nothing without your friends, boy.”

“Jesus…” Hiro mumbled as he stood up. He helped Baymax up as well. “What did he take?”

“Don't know.” Go-Go sped next to him. “But what's the matter? Why were you so out of it today?” 

“Nothing. School and the project is just stressing me out.” Hiro played it off. He pretended not to notice Honey Lemon’s smirk as she looked who was in the crowd. 

“Okay, let's go with that.” Wasabi clapped him on the back as Hiro’s eyes went wide.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I suck at writing action/fight scenes. 
> 
> Don't expect much more of them. 
> 
> Follow me on Tumblr - varianneedsabaymaxhug


	7. Chapter Seven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hiro says some things. 
> 
> Karmi says some things. 
> 
> Don't leave Hiro alone with girls anymore.

Hiro had a very large feeling of regret as him and Karmi worked in his room. 

Mainly because they were free to yell at each other since Aunt Cass went shopping for groceries and Baymax worked the cafe. Which meant that they were left unsupervised. That's Hiro’s excuse for what happened next. 

“Why don't we take this project,” Hiro grabbed at his hair in stress. “And move it all the way to Antarctica.”

“Because we need to come up with an actual solution to this thing or we'll never pass.” Karmi reminded as she had her head in her hands. “That won't bare well for me.”

“What do you mean?” Hiro asked. 

“Isn't it obvious? Wouldn't you get into trouble if you don't pass one assignment?” Karmi looked up from her arms. She stared at him in confusion. 

“I mean, if I don't pass a class, maybe. But one assignment isn't really anything.” Hiro shrugged. “When I failed this project the first two times everyone was just patient with me and helped me get through it.”

Karmi was silent for a while. She focused her attention to the papers in front of her. Finally, she said, “I've never been able to have anything like that.”

Hiro sat down on his bed. What did she mean? All of a sudden, why was she suddenly revealing new information to him? He doesn't mind, but he was curious. 

“Sorry.” Karmi apologized. “C’mon, we have to work on this.”

She probably thought he was silent because he was weirded out. “Don't apologize. Tell me what's wrong.” Hiro felt like he was being encouraging. He felt like…

Like somebody he once knew… 

“It's fine!” Karmi snapped. There it is. There's the side of Karmi he usually saw. The one who hated him still. “Look, we need to get this done, and we can't do this with you trying to get me to talk!”

“Why are you such a bitch sometimes?” Hiro snapped back. He wasn't going to let her be the only one to talk. “I try to be your friend but you never let me. Talk to me like a friend, not like a stranger.”

Karmi turned around and stared him in the eyes with a death glare. “Because I don't really know what it's like to talk to a friend. I've never had one.”

Hiro stood up. “Then let me be your friend. I can help you.”

“What do you mean help?”

Hiro knew immediately that he had said the wrong thing. Don't leave him alone with girls. Especially when it's girls that his aunt wants to set him up with. Don't do it. 

“I didn't mean-”

“No, you didn't.” Karmi stood up and walked over to him. “You think I need help. I probably do. Would my family let me? No, because they don't want to admit that their daughter has problems. So no, don't offer help. I can't accept it.”

“I didn't mean for that to come out the way that it did.” Hiro tried to talk as calmly and soft as possible. “I'm sorry.”

Karmi looked out his window. Her eyes were watery. Was Hiro really about to make her cry? “Thanks.” She quickly wiped her eyes. “I,” she inhaled. “I'm sorry, too.”

Hiro faced her. She still wasn't looking at him. “What are you sorry for?”

“For being such a bitch.” 

“Hey,” Hiro grabbed the side of her face to make her face him. He let go quickly. “I was speaking out of anger. I don't know what I was saying.”

“I was the reason you were angry so I probably deserved that.” Karmi glanced at his alarm clock. “Well, I should head downstairs. I don't think that Baymax should be running the cafe by himself.”

“It's already time for your shift?” Hiro didn't know where the time had gone. How had they been working for so long, yet still didn't have a clue for the project? 

“Yeah. Surprise.” Karmi grabbed her phone from the desk and made her way downstairs. “We'll work after my shift?”

“Yeah.” Hiro waved goodbye to her. 

Maybe Granville was right to pair them. At the same time, she could've been incredibly wrong. Hiro didn't know which one he was scared of more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was in a pretty shitty mood writing this, and I'm pretty sure it shows. 
> 
> Don't judge this too harshly. I was writing out of pure emotion. 
> 
> Follow me on Tumblr - varianneedsabaymaxhug
> 
> :)


	8. Chapter Eight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You just gotta have those talks sometimes.

“So,” Aunt Cass bumped Hiro’s shoulder as they stood side by side, doing the dishes. “I’ve noticed that you and Karmi have been hanging out tons more.”

“They have a project that they're working on together.” Baymax informed from the doorway.

“Well, we could be spending more time if she didn't have to work.” What Hiro actually meant was that they could spend more time yelling at each other, trying to decide what to do for the project. 

“She got off her shift already. Why don't you go with her now?” Aunt Cass asked. 

“I can't spend every waking moment with her, now can I?” Hiro sarcastically answered. “I want to spend time with the incredibly cool and amazing Aunt Cass.”

Aunt Cass laughed. She knew that her nephew was going through the wonderful stages of the teenage years. She had to make sure that he survived it with his sanity. 

“How are Go Go and Honey Lemon doing? I heard that they moved in together.” Cass didn't have to make his whole life about a girl, now did she? 

“They're pretty good.” Hiro nodded. “They've been dating for about a month now.”

“Oh, that's incredible for them.” There was one talk that Cass never had in her teenage years. She wanted Hiro to be aware of it. “Have you ever considered anything other than girls?”

“Honestly,” Hiro put down the dish that he was washing. “I have. I've considered boys. Boys and girls. I considered if I even was a boy at one point. I question it every now and then, but it's not something that I regularly think about.”

“If you ever need somebody to talk to about this kind of thing,” Cass hugged her nephew. “I may not be the smartest person about this, but I will always be here.”

“Thank you, Aunt Cass.” Hiro hugged his aunt back. He was never able to tell Tadashi about the small struggles he had. He never told his brother about girl trouble, and not even guy trouble. 

The moment got more comfortable as Baymax inserted himself into the hug. “My programming allows me to help patients, regardless of race, sexuality, or gender.”

“You are all amazing.” Hiro was so lucky to have so many people who love him. He knew some people didn't have this. He was lucky enough for support. “But right now, I'm leaning more towards girls…”

Hiro had to keep up the act. Aunt Cass wanted Hiro to find somebody? Hiro was going to pretend that he has somebody. It's somebody even Cass approves of. 

“Ah, I see.” Aunt Cass winked at him. “If you ever need any girl help, you ask whoever. It doesn't even have to be me. I haven't been a teenage girl for fifteen years.”

“I'll make sure you know what goes on between us.” Hiro didn't have to mention who the girl waa. Aunt Cass knew. There was no reason to keep bringing her up. 

Hiro didn't know what to make of what had happened in his room earlier. Hiro had pretty much accidentally made her cry. She even apologized for her actions. 

It was unlike Karmi to actually admit when she was wrong. Also, what she said about her family not allowing her to get help. Something was happening. 

Whatever happens doesn't excuse her for being mean. It just gives an explanation. An explanation that Hiro wants so he can be friends with her. 

“If a girl apologizes to you, and she never apologizes to anybody, what does that mean?” Hiro asked. He needed to know, and he didn't exactly want to ask his friends, who weren't very fond of Karmi. 

Aunt Cass thought for a while. Then, she said, “Well, I say she probably values you over other people.”

Hiro nodded. There's no way that Karmi actually likes him as even a friend. Still, it was a good start. He needed some time to think now. 

“Thanks, Aunt Cass.” Hiro finished rinsing the plate he was washing, then left the room. “Goodnight.” 

It was around eleven at night, and he had plans with the gang in the morning. Now, all he hoped was to get his head on straight and his brain working.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oof, I actually like what I wrote for once.
> 
> Follow me on Tumblr - varianneedsabaymaxhug


	9. Chapter Nine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the words of Ted Mosby:
> 
> Nothing good ever happens after two am.

“Hiro?” Wasabi called in a sing song voice as they all sat down for a two am snack while studying. 

“Yes?” Hiro looks up from his apple, Gatorade, and eight empty packets of pixy sticks. “What is so important that you have decided to distract me from this perfect apple?”

“What's important?” Honey Lemon looked scandalized. “What's important is that our little Hiro is growing up. Parents don't exaggerate when they talk about how their kids are their life.”

“I am not your life.” Hiro pretended to be a mad middle aged mom. “Your life should consist of your studies, work, and how your mental and physical health are doing.”

“Uh oh,” Go Go scoffed. “What's going on with her?” Honey Lemon not so discreetly hit Go Go on the arm. Hiro looked at where Go Go was looking at when she had mentioned somebody.

Hiro saw Karmi grabbing at her arm, holding herself up by the wall of the dining hall. She hazily reached out for the door and left the hall, leaving Hiro with questions. 

“That is weird.” Hiro stood up. She could be doing something suspicious with the way that she snuck out. With the way she acted the other day, it's not very surprising. Besides, it's two in the morning. 

He opened the door to the dining hall and found Karmi walking along a wall, still clutching her arm. She went into the biotech lab, but not before looking around her to see if anyone saw her. Hiro followed. 

When Hiro opened the door to the lab, he heard soft cries coming from around the corner. That made his suspicions arise more, and he walked until he found who was making the noises, though he feels he knew who it is 

“What are you doing?” Hiro asked when he saw Karmi on the floor, back to the wall, and clutching her arm. 

“Go away.” She attempted to cover up the rest of her arm, but Hiro was still able to see what she was hiding. 

“Is that blood?” Hiro asked, taking notice of the red-stained orange turtleneck. 

“I…” Karmi sighed and wiped her eyes dry. “I was walking home after my shift when I saw Momosake. But, I guess she saw me before I saw her or something.”

“What do you mean?” Hiro knew where this was heading, but he didn't want to admit it. He didn't like it when people that he knew were and/or had been in danger. 

“The next thing I knew, one of her knives had cut my forearm. I managed to get the bleeding to stop, but I struggled to get here so I can properly take care of my arm.”

Hiro stood up. “Wait here.” He hadn't brought Baymax with him, and instead left him inside of the dining hall. He was running before he knew it, and ridiculously angry. 

“I can't freaking believe it.” Hiro yelled as he opened the door to the dining hall again. He got weird stares from other people who were also there at the unruly hour. 

“What happened, Hiro?” Honey Lemon questioned. 

“Monosake attacked Karmi.” Hiro grabbed Baymax. “Now, I'm going to go.” He didn't bother more explanation. He accidentally knocked over a chair in an attempt to hurry out. 

“My sensors detect that you are angry and stressed. Are you alright?” Baymax asked as they ran. 

“I'm fine.” Hiro growled. 

Momosake doesn't know their identities. She doesn't know that Hiro and Karmi have any sort of connection. Why in absolute hell would Momosaks attack his partner for a project? 

Baymax saw Karmi on the floor and scanned her. Hiro sat next to her and watched as the robot worked his magic. One of the first things that Baymax did was clean her wound. 

When Baymax sprayed the hydrogen peroxide on the cut, Karmi let out a tiny yelp of pain as it stinged her. She shot her hands next to her and gripped Hiro's hand tightly. 

Hiro ran his thumb over her knuckles to let her know that she was okay. Her connection to him was probably what made this happen in the first place. Hiro at least felt guilty. 

“It is advised to not use your right arm for three days. Apply new bandages every night to your arm. Clean the wound with hydrogen peroxide or iodine.” Baymax was finished bandaging her up, and gave her a sticker on the bandages. 

“Good thing I'm left handed.” Karmi joked. To still be joking after pretty much getting stabbed in the arm seems like a pretty cool thing to do. 

“Can you tell me everything that happened? Only if you want to, though.” Hiro now felt like everything that he said was going to make her cry. Again. 

Karmi sighed. “I had a late shift today. I decided to walk home at one thirty in the morning, because for some reason I thought that it was a good idea when I thought of it. 

“I get about across the street from the school and I feel a horrible pain in my right arm. I turn and see Momosake. She ran away after, leaving me with an arm that her knife had grazed.” She finished explaining. 

“Jesus…” Hiro muttered. How was Momosake going to attack somebody he knew? She didn't know his identity. Why would she attack someone she thought to be a random person? 

“Thank you, for helping me when I needed it.” Karmk looked at Hiro dead in the eyes, like she was sincere about this. 

“You're welcome.” 

Maybe it was the smile that they shared at this moment, but whatever it was, Karmi and Hiro became friends at two in the morning, on the floor of the biotech lab.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Maybe Ted Mosby was wrong. I̶ ̶m̶e̶a̶n̶ ̶h̶e̶ ̶d̶i̶d̶ ̶e̶n̶d̶ ̶u̶p̶ ̶w̶i̶t̶h̶ ̶R̶o̶b̶i̶n̶ ̶t̶h̶a̶t̶ ̶s̶t̶u̶p̶i̶d̶ ̶t̶h̶o̶t̶.̶
> 
> Follow me on Tumblr - varianneedsabaymaxhug
> 
> :)


	10. Chapter Ten

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Karmi, you absolute dumbass.
> 
> Don't use knives to butter toast.

“Three more mugs coming your way,” Aunt Cass called from the coffee machine. 

“On it,” Karmi grabbed the mugs from Cass. Her arms were full at this point. Many students from SFIT decided to come this lovely evening. The partner project was due soon, and many needed a place to work. 

Fortunately, Hiro and Karmi had the luxury of going upstairs and working without anyone around. But, Hiro was still scared to be alone with her for fear of making her cry again. He felt bad, yeah, but he's not even sure if it was what he said that made her cry. 

Sure, they had become friends. It took Karmi getting practically stabbed for it to happen but nevertheless, it happened. Hiro doesn't want to make his friends cry, though. It's being a jerk to make somebody cry. 

Hiro was sitting in the booth across from Baymax, doing research on the project and what they could do to prevent a building from collapsing. Hiro's fourteen year old mind was ready to collapse. 

Karmi literally collapsed. 

A customer had asked her to butter their toast, because they can't do it themselves apparently. “I'll bring it back right now,” Karmi grabbed the toast from the table and walked to the kitchen to find a butter knife. 

“Damn it,” Karmi whispered under her breath as she searched, but only found regular knives. Oh well, it was what was going to have to do because the butter knives had disappeared. 

As she grabbed a knife and sliced a piece of butter, she started spreading it over the toast. What she didn't see was that Hiro was walking into the kitchen at that moment. Why did he choose that moment? 

“Butter knives are in the bathroom sink-” but Hiro never finished what he was going to say. He had scared Karmi, and she had ended up missing the toast. 

She jumped when Hiro entered the room, and instead of continuing to butter the toast, she had accidentally cut through her orange turtleneck and sliced a small cut on her skin. 

Due to her previous injuries, this meant that she had reopened a wound. She started bleeding, and immediately gave a little cry. 

Now, Hiro, who had not seen that his actions had caused her to cut herself, thought she was just scared and that's why she had started to cry a little. He walked closer to her to reassure her, and then saw the bleeding.

Without speaking, he ran out the kitchen and grabbed Baymax, still in the booth where Hiro had left him. He dragged the confused robot to the kitchen, where Karmi was leaning against a counter and clutching her arm. 

“It appears that the cuts have reopened.” Baymax scanned the fragile girl. He sprayed rubbing alcohol on her arm, cleaning the cut for the second time this past week. Karmi gasped in pain. 

“You're fine, you're okay,” Hiro gently grabbed her hand to reassure her. She's okay. She's in the best hands. Baymax can treat her. The only downfall in that this whole thing is causing her pain 

“Oh shit.” All three in the kitchen turned their heads to see Aunt Cass in the doorway, taking in the scene, which probably looked ultra ridiculous to anyone who walked in. “Okay, I'm going to let you off your shift now.” With that, Aunt Cass walked out the kitchen.

Hiro looked at Karmi, expecting her to be at least a little relieved. Except, when he turned to face her, she had unshed tears in her eyes. She was looking straight at him. Hiro didn't know it hurt that bad to clean a wound. 

“I gotta go. Thank you.” Karmi stood up after Baymax applied new bandages to her arm, and left through the door in a hurry.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In honor of the season finale today, I had to update. The finale was amazing though. Definitely exceeded my expectations. Tell me your thoughts on the finale, I'd love to hear!
> 
> Follow me on Tumblr - varianneedsabaymaxhug
> 
> :)


	11. Chapter Eleven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Panic arises?
> 
> Never fear! Honey Lemon is here!

If there’s somebody that Honey Lemon thought she wouldn't talk to, it was Karmi.

Honey Lemon was casually chilling outside of the chemistry building, waiting for her girlfriend, when she heard somebody calling her name. Gogo doesn’t usually get out of class for at least another half hour. 

“Honey Lemon, wait!” The blond girl decided to finally turn around and see who was trying to get her attention. She was quite surprised to see Hiro’s partner for their assignment. 

“Karmi?” Honey Lemon questioned. They’re both two different majors. There’s really no reason for her to be coming up to the older girl.

“I really need your help,” Karmi began talking at a very fast pace. Honey Lemon did not pick up on a single word that she was saying. She had never seen this before in the biotech major.

Honey Lemon patted her shoulder and motioned for her to stop. “I think that you should slow down. You’re obviously very panicked. Why don’t we go talk somewhere?”

“I’ve never had friends before.” Karmi put a hand to her head and smacked herself. “I’ve never had a friend, so I’ve never been friends with the opposite sex before. What do I do?”

Ah. So that’s what the poor girl is freaking out over. But why come to Honey Lemon? Karmi could go to anyone about this. The only reason she would be coming to her would be if…

“Is this new friend Hiro?”

Karmi simply nodded. “I really regret how mean I was to him and I want to fix it. I feel terrible and we’re friends now. I’ve never had friends before. What am I supposed to do? How do I interact? Do guys like football? Do I talk about baseball? I like baseball. Wow, look at that ground ball that Machado somehow caught. It’s three outs, wow.”

She was rambling again, and Honey Lemon found it similar to the way that Hiro rambles when he gets nervous or panicked. These two are more similar than they think.

“You like baseball? What team?” Hiro and Tadashi were Giants fans. Tadashi, before coming to SFIT, always wore a Giants baseball cap. Maybe Karmi and Hiro could talk about baseball-

“The Dodgers. I love them. My favorite player is Manny Machado. Should I get the conversation about that? I could do that. Okay, maybe this isn’t so hard,” Karmi laughed in relief and put her back against the railing of the stairs of the chem building.

“Actually, maybe you shouldn’t,” The Dodgers and the Giants? Well, that’s one of the reasons why they didn’t get along, even if they didn’t know the team that the other went for.  
“I don’t know how this friend thing works, Honey Lemon,” Karmi slid down the railing and put her face in her hands. “I was so mean to him because I didn’t want friends. I don’t know how to talk to people, so I chose the easy way out and tried to make him hate me so we wouldn’t interact.”

That’s what is so great about Hiro. Despite how hard Karmi tried to make him hate her, he tried even harder to become her friend. Now, they are. Honey Lemon was proud of him, even if it did cause her to have to talk to the girl herself.

Honey Lemon sat down beside her. “Hiro isn’t the kind to hate a person. He would ask us plenty of times what your problem was, and why you hated him. He always made an effort. It’s just that now it’s paid off.”

“But what if he regrets it?” Karmi, if possible, shrank even more into the stairs. “What if he doesn’t want to be my friend after all? He could make his sweet revenge and be mean to me back. I’ll be alone again. I don’t want to be alone anymore.”

Honey Lemon felt for the girl. She has a girlfriend and amazing friends. Karmi has never felt that before. Now that she is, she’s scared of losing it. 

“Hiro may be a little shit, but he’s not cruel. That would be downright cruel. He isn’t like that, and he obviously wanted to be your friend for a reason. He wouldn’t have put in as much effort as he did to do a one eighty on you.” 

Karmi lifted her head and smiled at the older girl. “Thank you.”

Honey Lemon stood up and offered her a hand. “Anytime.” She pulled Karmi up from the floor. “So, where are you heading to now?”

“Home. I don’t have class today, and I really only came so that I could find you.” Karmi smiles at Honey Lemon. “Really though, thank you.”

Honey Lemon smiled back, and watched as the other girl left.

“What was that about?” Honey Lemon looked to her left and saw Gogo standing next to her.

“Ten bucks says that Hiro and Karmi get together while working on the project.” Honey Lemon smiled affectionately as she watched Karmi walk away.

Gogo laughed. “Five that it’ll happen after the project.”

“You’re on.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm super happy with how this turned out even though it was written in my AP English class but o well
> 
> Follow my Tumblr - varianneedsabaymaxhug
> 
> :)


	12. Chapter Twelve

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gogo, leave the poor kid alone.

“Yo, nerd,” Gogo greeted Hiro. “I gotta ask you a question.”

“Ask away,” Hiro went along with whatever Gogo was going to say. He was just chilling in the library, catching up on some studying when his friend pulled a chair up next to him. 

“So you and Karmi?” Gogo was going to try to get the information out of him on way or another. If one of those ways involved getting to smack Hiro upside the head, than she was going to be more than okay with it. 

Hiro did a sound of realization. “Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that little detail. Remember when Momokase kinda turned her into a pin cushion? Well, we became friends that night.”

“Oh, cool.”

Gogo knew that something had happened that night because Karmi and Hiro hadn’t fought since. Or at least not that she knew of. 

Besides, she wanted to win the bet that she had made against her girlfriend. It was all good fun, though, and she wasn’t going to force them together if they really are just friends.

“Do you know anything about her?” Gogo asked. Like yeah the two are friends but do they really know that much about each other? 

“Huh?” Hiro didn’t understand the question, apparently. For being a teen genius, he could be really stupid when it comes to things that aren’t academic.

Gogo sighed. “You guys are friends. But, how good of friends are you?”

Hiro shrugged. “How good of friends can we be after like a couple of days?”

“Why don't you try getting to know her better?” Gogo suggested. “But why don't you try doing it as Captain Cutie and Hiro. It'll show you her truest form.”

It's extremely wrong. It's basically lying to the poor girl. But, if Karmi is actually someone who she doesn't say the she is, then she needed to make sure that Hiro wasn't going to get hurt. 

After all, toxic and abusive friendships can be just as traumatizing as relationships. 

“She could be a villain working for Obake for all that we know,” Hiro joked. “You're right. I need to make sure that she's on our side. After all, I did say that it seemed fishy for her to be stabbed so suddenly.”

It's not that it was fishy, Gogo thought to herself. It's the fact that it happened when you guys were getting along already that makes this seem really odd. 

“For all you know, Obake could be kidnapping her every night and forcing her to play Monopoly.” Gogo forcibly laughed. She knew that Hiro could take some things too seriously, and he didn't need that many ideas in his head. 

It's good to have concerns. She has them too. But there's a fine line between concern and being straight up suspicious. Hiro can't cross that line in case Karmi really is just someone who has no bad secrets. 

“Would he make her play the whole game?” Hiro fake gasps in horror. 

“All twelve hours. He doesn't even let her read the rules like people only do when an argument breaks out.”

Hiro gasps again, and shakes his head in disbelief. He turns back to his study guide and puts his headphones back in. He still says, “I think I'll do what you suggested to do, though.”

Gogo knows that this is where the conversation ends since Hiro has gone back to studying. She smiles at him once, and walks away. 

She was so going to win this bet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's kinda 2 am rn and I was binge watching Voltron (I'm on S7E05) and I had to take a break so here I am writing. 
> 
> Follow my Tumblr - varianneedsabaymaxhug
> 
> :)


	13. Chapter Thirteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone groans at the same time:
> 
> Hiro no

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is no physical abuse in this but emotional abuse trigger warning 
> 
> (Not really but just in case)

This was a terrible idea, and Hiro knew it.

“Why am I doing this?” He said to himself as he put his suit on. “Oh, yeah, because anybody in the city could be getting kidnapped by Obake and being forced to play Monopoly.”

“Hiro,” Baymax walked into the room, confused. “Would you like me to come with you wherever you are going?”

“I know that I’m putting on my suit and you aren’t and I’m going alone and I have no powers,” Hiro sounded ridiculous, but he kept going. “But I promise that I will be fine.”

“Are you sure that you would not like me to accompany you?” Baymax get pushing that he should go with Hiro.

And Hiro was not having it. “I’ll be fine. The worst that can happen is that I personally run into Obake, which I will call for backup. Simple.”

He didn’t let his robot have another word. It was only ten at night, but since Aunt Cass gets up early to open the cafe, she has already gone to sleep. Perfect for Hiro to get away with sneaking out.

Look, he’s not leaving just so he could see Karmi. That’s ideal to figure out if she’s working for Obake though. No, he’s going to patrol and if he stumbles upon her then cool. But, he still has a city to protect and that comes first.

“I’m going to regret this so bad,” Hiro predicted as he started opening his window to his room and began climbing out. “I am going to fall and die. Someone kill me please.”

Where even is he going? Maybe he should’ve asked Baymax to come. It was going to be difficult to get around places on foot. He’s fast for a fourteen year old, but not for a superhero. 

“I am going to die,” Hiro repeated as he carefully climbed out the window. Maybe it wouldv’e been easier to walk out the front door, but that gives Baymax an easier oppertunity to follow him.

“I’m on the second story. Why did I think that this was a good idea?” Hiro successfully was out the window and on the ledge on the outside of his window.

Hiro started carefully climbing down. Front foot goes there, other hand goes there… “I’m going to yeet myself off of this window if I go any slower.”

That’s exactly what Hiro did once he had grown frusteraed of moving only three miles per hour. Once he was at a height where he couldn’t get hurt, he let go and let himself fall.

“I am never doing that again,” Hiro said, standing up and brushing himself on. He began to run through the streets, eyes peeled for any sign of suspicious activity.

Fred and Mini-Max were on the other side of the city, watching too. Hiro said he was going to use Baymax, but if he actually did find Karmi, he didn’t want Baymax there.

That’s when he heard it.

The shouting coming from one of the houses in his proximity. This could be domestic abuse, illegal betting over anything, etc. He had to go see what was happening to make sure it’s not illegal.

Or it could be the Dodger fans watching the game because the last time Hiro checked, it was tied and on the seventh inning so he could be running into nothing.

Never hurts to check.

Hiro carefully crept up to the house. The lights were off in all rooms but one. That’s the room he decided to examine first.

It was a two story house. The window on the second floor had a balcony on it. Climbing walls is easier than getting down due to the magnets on his hands. He activated them and climbed to the little balcony.

That’s when he saw the unexpected.

He saw a girl being yelled at. She was showing somebody else a paper. Hiro couldn’t see what it was, or even who. Curtains were blinding him, but nothing had gotten physical yet. 

“It’s a fancy rose if you really can’t understand it!” The girl shouted. “It’s for my open house project at SFIT. It’s glowing as part of the project. It’s not anything to do with drugs.”

“I’m done trying to get you away from this crap when you don’t listen.” It was a male this time speaking to the girl calmly. The careful tone of his voice sounded eerie almost.

Hiro recognized the girl’s voice, he just couldn’t pinpoint from where. The man though… That was someone he had never heard before, and Hiro was glad for it.

It looked as her head slightly turned in his direction. Hiro ducked, trying to hide. “I’m leaving,” the girl announced. “I’ll be back whenever I’m back.”

He heard a door swing open and slam close. Hiro decided that he had seen enough. The girl wasn’t in any danger if she left, right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm trying to keep this story light so this isn't gonna turn into something really deep and angtsy I'm just trying to add plot so yeah
> 
> Follow my Tumblr - varianneedsabaymaxhug
> 
> :)


	14. Chapter Fourteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Karmi almost calls the police.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, no real abuse but putting a warning just in case :)

It's been at least two days. 

Hiro tried to avoid the house. He really did. He tried to ignore the home where there were always shouting matches. It wasn't until he heard glass shattering that he knew he had to get involved. 

This time, he hid on the balcony of the window. Except, he hid on the very edge. Meaning that he was practically hanging, and just sitting on the tiny ledge that was keeping him from falling. 

What if getting involved made whatever was happening here worse? Maybe Baymax should've come with him. It was a bad idea for Hiro to come alone, but it's not like he could do much about it now. 

“Dad, I could get my project funded. What don't you understand?” The girl groaned from inside the house 

“I don't understand why you're throwing your life away,” said the man from inside. 

“Get out of my room,” the girl commanded. “Dad, I want you out of here now. The door is right there. Out now.”

Hiro didn't hear anything except for the sound of a door opening and closing. He almost fell off the edge of the balcony when the door to it opened. 

He almost fell off again when he saw who the girl was. 

Karmi walked to the end of her balcony. She leaned herself on the railing. Her hair was up in a bun; a style that Hiro hadn't seen on her before that he realized he liked. 

The urge to just go up to her and hug the poor girl was inevitable. She has been yelled at for the past three days, and all Hiro did was stand and listen to it because he was scared. 

All those times she would bully him… It was just an escape. Yeah, it doesn't excuse her actions but it does give an explanation. Also, it explained why she hated him at first. 

Her father wanted her to be perfect. Her father wanted her to be an angel that could do no wrong and was the younger student ever admitted to one of the best tech colleges in the country. 

He took that away… 

“I know that you're there,” Karmi spoke without having to look behind her. 

Hiro sighed. “How long have you known I was here?”

“Oh, like a day or two. I almost called the police twice.”

“Damnit.”

Karmi laughed at Hiro's annoyance. Well, to her it's Captain Cutie. “So, what are you doing here? Any real reason that you've been on my balcony for the past couple of days?"

Hiro shrugged. “I heard yelling. Had to make sure that it wasn't domestic violence or anything along those lines,” he paused for a second before continuing. “Your dad hasn't hit you, has he?”

“Oh, no,” Karmi shook her head. “He doesn't get physical. Just yell. A lot. Especially because I'm not a robotics major. Biotech is my major but go off I guess.”

“Are you okay?” Hiro took this question as an opportunity to hop over the railing of the balcony so he's not actually about to fall off. He sat on the part where she was standing. 

Karmi shook her head. “Not really. I mean, my school life is going amazing. I finally have a friend. Never had one of those before. I'm doing good grade wise. But besides that… Nothing in my life seems to be going right.”

So she's definitely more open to people now that she's not lonely anymore. Hiro knew she never really had friends but not having friends with a family like this… He couldn't imagine. 

Having to suffer because he didn't want to take the subject people expected him to take? He couldn't take that. Karmi really did have a hard wall up if she went through this and is still able to keep up her love for biotech. 

“What about your friend?” Hiro suggested. “How about talking to them? They could always help you out, you know. That's what friends are. They're always there for you.”

“I guess I need more time to adjust to this whole friend thing,” Karmi chuckled, but Hiro could hear the sadness in her voice. She sounded so… Tired…  

“You'll get through these tough times,” Hiro stood up on the railing. “Tough times don't last but tough people do.”

“How can I be tough though?” Karmi questioned. “The only way I know of being tough is by being a complete bitch. I want to try to change that. I don't know how.”

Hiro contemplated this. He liked it better when him and Karmi were actually getting along. She is way better when she's not pissed off at him. All she needs to do is look at the positive more. 

“Try not to focus on the negative,” Hiro suggested. “You go to school? Think about how great school is. Favorite movie? Song? Think about the great qualities in life rather than the negative.”

“Thanks,” Karmi smiled. “For real though. I wouldn't usually thank anyone after anything but I guess my perspective on people has changed since I actually got friends.”

“We all need people in our lives,” Hiro turned on the magnets to his suit. “Some of us just get them later in life.”

He saluted her goodbye and jumped off the balcony. He smiled to himself as he heard her gasp. The magnets connected to the floor so the impact didn't hurt. 

As secretly as he could because he didn't want anyone seeing him leave Karmi's house, he made his way back the the cafe. 

And waiting for him when he got home was… 

“It is unhealthy for a teenager to be out at two in the morning without a sweater,” Baymax lectured. “Try not to get yourself and your friends sick.”

Hiro gave himself a knowing smile. “Friends.”

“Would you like me to call them now?” Baymax flashed their contact pictures on his screen. 

“Wait no,” Hiro paused. “It's two in the morning. They're not awake right now.”

“Isn't Karmi awake?”

“What?”

“What?”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fuck me and getting writing inspiration at three in the morning. Does this make sense?? Probably not. I am sorry for whoever actually reads this crap. 
> 
> I'm not kidding when I say every chapter is written after 10 PM
> 
> Follow my Tumblr - varianneedsabaymaxhug
> 
> :)


	15. Chapter Fifteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hiro has a thought that he doesn't know what to do with.

Hiro was hanging out with his friends when he felt the guilt. 

 

Fred was trying to balance an egg on a spoon when he saw her. Hiro saw Karmi acting the way that she always does. Keeping to herself and not bothering anyone else. No difference. 

 

Except, he knew otherwise. He knew that Karmi kept to herself so her dad wouldn't get mad at her for not being a robotics major. He wasn't supposed to know this though. This information wasn't for him. 

 

Everyone needs someone to be there for them in a time of need. Hiro wanted to be that person. He can't describe it, but he has this feeling of always wanting to be with her. He doesn't know how to explain it. 

 

He didn't want to go into full details. He doesn't want to explain to anyone else the feeling of wanting to be with someone. To want to be with someone… 

 

Oh fuck… 

 

Hiro was hit with a wave of new emotions.  _ To want to be with someone.  _ When he says this, does he mean that he… And Karmi… 

 

What does Hiro mean? 

 

He doesn't know. He'll figure that out later. For now, he stood up from his place on the grass underneath a shady tree and walked towards his friend. The rest of the gang was left confused. Fred even dropped the egg. 

 

“Hey, Karmi,” Hiro greeted. He ignored the little voice in the back of his head. It was bothering him, especially with what it was trying to tell him. He couldn't listen to it. 

 

“Hey,” Karmi nodded at him. She wasn't acting any different from the way that she normally does. How is she not acting weird with what she told Captain Cutie literally yesterday? 

 

It's not okay. It's not okay that she acts like getting yelled at is a regular occurrence. She acts like at this point that it doesn't even bother her anymore. How does this happen?

 

Hiro decided that he was going to step up as a friend and give her the support that Karmi needed. He put one foot forward and wrapped his arms around her waist, giving her a hug. 

 

“I'm sorry…” He doesn't know what he's apologizing for. But, he wants her to know that he's here for her. He felt Karmi's arms around his neck, completing the hug. 

 

“I need help,” Karmi sniffled. He felt her face go into his neck. It was a bit awkward because she was taller than him and height difference™, but he was still willing to make it work. 

 

For her. 

 

_ To want to be with someone.  _

 

“I'm here,” Hiro tightened his grip around her waist, feeling the soft material of her turtleneck on his knuckles. He ran his hands along the stitches of her sweater. 

 

The sniffles continued. He wasn't going to let her go until she wanted him to. He couldn't tell if she was crying just by the sounds of her sniffling, but he still wasn't going to stop holding her unless she told him she was uncomfortable. 

 

“Are you here?” Karmi asked. Her voice sounded raspier than the way that it usually does. Maybe she was crying. 

 

“Always,” Hiro assured her. 

 

“Can we talk, then?”

 

“Always.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AHHH
> 
> Idk how to feel about this chapter. It was nice as I wrote if but rereading it felt... Bland. 
> 
> Idk 
> 
> Follow my Tumblr - varianneedsabaymaxhug 
> 
> :)


	16. Chapter Sixteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hiro really is in denial at this point.

“Are you okay?” Was the first question that Hiro asked once he and Karmi were alone. 

 

Karmi had a class to get to earlier and she had work after. Aunt Cass was completely fine with Hiro taking her employee and spending time with her. Aunt Cass wanted this after all. 

 

“Not really,” Karmi shrugged her shoulders. “I'm just… It's hard. Life is really hard right now. I need someone to talk to but if you don't want to then I understa-”

 

Hiro interrupted her before she even had the chance to speak again. “I'll be here. That's what friends are for. You ever need someone to talk to and I'm here.”

 

Karmi smiled in gratitude. “I just… I have a really hard home life. My dad is really hard on me about grades. It's like I can never do right in his eyes. I don't know how to fix that.”

 

Oh shoot. She actually took the advice that Captain Cutie gave her. Hiro was not expecting this. He didn't think she was going to listen to him. It's good for her, though. 

 

“Have you thought about maybe talking to him?” Yes, the most basic of replies is what he had to say to her. He wants to help, but he has to make it seem like he hasn't heard this before. 

 

She put a hand to her head, messing up the hair in the front of her ponytail. “No, actually. I've thought about it before. I just don't want to try it because I don't think that he'll listen.”

 

Hiro didn't know what to say to that. He knows that he has to be here for her to support her. 

 

_ To want to be with someone. _

 

“Nah, it’s dumb anyways,” Karmi shook her head. “I barely stopped being mean to you. I shouldn’t be telling you my life story. Sorry for bothering you. I’ll be on my way now.”

 

Hiro wasn’t going to let her go that quickly. 

 

He grabbed her wrist as she started to walk away. “People in need always need help.”

 

“Hiro,” Karmi took her wrist back. “I wanted to say that I’m sorry. I’m really sorry for treating you like crap over and over again. I was such a bitch and I’m so sorry. You probably don’t forgive me, and that’s okay. You can take all the time needed to forgive me. You don’t even have to. I understand why you wouldn’t. I treated you like crap. I’m sorry for that.”

 

He doesn’t think he’s ever heard a more genuine apology. Hiro is going to be completely truthful when he says that he doesn’t forgive her. She was a bully, and he isn’t going to let her off the hook like that.

 

But she actually sounded sorry. She continued to sound sorry as she kept talking. “I regret it all now. You were smarter than me and I didn’t want to believe that, so I bullied you instead of taking a step back and coming to terms with myself. I took it out on you when I shouldn’t have and now I’m rambling aha. Okay, I’m really sorry.”

 

Hiro grabbed her wrist again and pulled her into a hug. “I can’t forgive that easily. But, I will be here for you.”

 

_ To want to be with someone. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is so rushed I'm so sorry ahhh
> 
> Follow my Tumblr - varianneedsabaymaxhug
> 
> :)


	17. Chapter Seventeen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aunt Cass does some scheming

AC: You guys aren't going to believe what happened today 

 

Cass was way too excited when she texted the group chat containing Wasabi, Go Go, Honey Lemon, and Fred. They purposely left out Hiro because of the subject of the chat. 

 

HL: SPILL THE TEA SIS ☕

 

F: Wht happened ? Tell us

 

W: I'll believe it all. Just tell me now. 

 

GG: lol just say it

 

It was weird to Hiro when he heard his aunt squealing from downstairs. Whatever. He continued to brush his teeth as he got ready to go to sleep. 

 

AC: Hiro and Karmi hugged for basically all of today 

 

She patiently awaited for them to respond again. Maybe another five seconds. It really doesn't take long for them to reply to anything that had to do with the pair. 

 

HL: 😍😍

 

F: O wow

 

W: Our little boy is growing up so quickly 

 

GG: im pressing f for respect for my man hiro

 

“Is Aunt Cass okay?” Baymax asked his patient. 

 

“She's just laughing like she's on laughing gas right now,” Hiro shrugged as he put his toothpaste and brush away. “Probably something on the TV.”

 

AC: It's so obvious that he likes her but I don't want to ask him. That's embarrassing 

 

HL: That's why you gotta let them figure of their feelings first 🤷

 

F: ^ They are only 14

 

W: Yeah. Kids these days don't really confess feelings for each other like they used to

 

GG: that's why we set them up together i stg 

 

Hiro physically jumped when he heard Aunt Cass whooping. “Are you good down there?” He yelled in the house. 

 

“I'm amazing!” She responded. 

 

AC: Okay, gotta make sure that we're on the same page. 

 

HL: You mean we're actually gonna get them together ?? 😍😍 Yes 

 

F: We're doing this ? Like doing doing this ?

 

W: I believe that we are. Please tell me that we are. 

 

GG: cass is literally the smartest one here yes we are gonna pair up hiro and karmi

 

“Hey, Hiro?” Aunt Cass shouted. 

 

“Yes?” He responded by shouting back. The neighbors must love them for yelling back and forth at each other at eleven at night. Hiro didn't have class tomorrow until two. He could stay up. 

 

“Wanna have Christmas as our house this year and invite everyone over?” She asked. 

 

“Yeah, that's fine,” Hiro shrugged. He didn't really mind it. Yeah, he liked it. Fine. He has episodes of Flash to watch. He's not really paying much attention to his aunt. 

 

Oops. 

 

“Perfect,” Aunt Cass made the perfect symbol with her hands even though her nephew can't see it. “K, you're good now.”

 

AC: I think that I have an idea

 

HL: Well?? Spill ☕

 

F: Yes! We wanna be in on it

 

W: I'm fine, as long as I'm not forced to go into smelly places 

 

HL: I already apologized for that 🤦 Besides I needed it for my project and like I got an A so it's worth it

 

W: I mean ig 

 

GG: okay guys shh i wanna hear the plan 

 

Aunt Cass explained it in the group chat, in great detail, her plan. It all tied together in the end, and everyone was all for it. There was no way that it wasn't going to work. 

 

There's no way. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is horrible AGHHHHHHH but it's also 1 am and I'm texting rn so like inspiration ya know?? 
> 
> Follow my Tumblr -varianneedsabaymaxhug
> 
> :)


	18. Chapter Eighteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hiro is an emotional boi

Christmas is a magical time. 

 

Especially when Professor Granville gave everyone an extension on the project for the earthquake. He and Karmi high fived each other underneath the lab table. 

 

It was actually a lot of fun hanging up the lights around the cafe. Hiro at some point almost accidentally hung himself with some colorful red and blue lights. He left the rest of the hanging to Karmi. 

 

“You turn fifteen in a couple of days, don't you?” Karmi asked as she thumbtacked another picture of Mochi to the end of the Christmas lights. There's Mochi pictures everywhere now. 

 

“December twenty seventh to be exact,” Hiro grinned. “Hey, wait here. I'll be right back.”

 

He left a very confused Karmi alone. He ran upstairs to the house part of the cafe. He looked around at his desk where all the presents for his friends were. He shifted them around a bit, as they were hidden by Honey Lemon's gift. 

 

(Don't tell her, but it's a new designer pencil case that she's been wanting for a while with a little boat that even had water inside of it.) 

 

“I'm coming back!” He shouted from upstairs to make sure that Karmi heard him. He hid the present behind his back. It reminds him of something a couple might do. Surprising her with a Christmas gift-

 

Wait. 

 

Hiro didn't get to finish over analyzing his thoughts as he got downstairs and found her nowhere to be seen. Didn't he just tell her to stay where she was? 

 

“Um, where'd you go?” Hiro realized that this was a dumb question. If she was in the cafe the he obviously would've seen her. For a teen genius he's pretty stupid.

 

“I had to grab something from my bike,” Karmi shook a bag in her hand. “I turned sixteen three weeks ago, I still don't have a car,” she threw her hands in the air. 

 

Hiro didn't wait for any introductions or anything. It was Christmas eve, and he was no longer wanting to be patient. He didn't want to do this in front of their friends. He found it better to do it alone, in private. 

 

“Here,” he held out his arm to present a very poorly wrapped gift. “I'm absolutely horrendous at wrapping gifts and oh, okay.”

 

He didn't get to finish his apology for bad wrapping as Karmi leapt forward and hugged him. She held him tight in her embrace, her green Christmas sweater rubbing against Hiro's arms. 

 

Hiro felt something go on his head. He looked up and saw the bill of a hat. He let go of the hug to see what it was. 

 

“I know, it's not that great but- oh my god I am so sorry,” Karmi put her hands over her mouth as she saw Hiro start to cry. It wasn't the gift itself that made him cry. 

 

He had a new SFIT hat. One identical to the one that Tadashi had left behind. They stopped making them in Tadashi's freshman year at the school. How Karmi got her hands on one… 

 

Hiro didn't even know what to say. It made him think as if Tadashi had given it to him brand new. The hat itself looks brand new. How…? “Thank you so much.”

 

Karmi shrugged. “I've seen you with a hat like this often, but it looked kinda beat up. I found someone on eBay who was selling it, and I figured it was a good idea. Was it not?”

 

“It's the best idea you've had in awhile,” he said as a backhanded compliment. She lightly slapped his shoulder as he laughed at the tame insult. 

 

Karmi got around to unwrapping her own gift. “You put too much damn tape on this thing,” she grunted as she struggled. Hiro wiped his tears away on the crew of his shirt and laughed at his bad wrapping. 

 

When she somehow finally unwrapped the gift, her eyes got wide. “A new turtleneck! I love these things.  _ And  _ in purple! How'd you know?” She got all excited and jumped around a bit. 

 

With her Captain Cutie obsession and always wearing a turtleneck, he shrugged. “Just a hunch.”

 

Hiro held his arms out as an offer for another hug. Karmi accepted, and put her arms around his neck. His arms wrapped on her waist as he tried to pull her closer. 

 

He felt comfortable. Especially since this hug felt different from all the other ones that they've shared. This one felt… Needy almost. Like they needed to be hugging at this exact moment it they'd explode. 

 

The moment was quickly ruined when the rest of the Nerd Gang bursted in the door. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'all don't understand how badly I've treated this poor fic oops
> 
> I've been so busy writing my plance fic and planning a new HP au that I had to update this and it's horribleeeeeee ughhhhhh
> 
> Follow my Tumblr - varianneedsabaymaxhug
> 
> :)


	19. Chapter Nineteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aunt Cass' plan goes into play.

Hiro laughed as Karmi frowned. “It's not very nice to make fun of people, ya know?”

 

He wiped his eyes, pretending that he had tears. “I can't help it that it's absolutely hilarious that you spilled vinegar all over someone in your old biology class.”

 

Aunt Cass clapped happily. “The clock turned midnight at least fifteen minutes ago but we decided to let you two keep talking. It's time for gifts is what I'm trying to get at here.”

 

Honey Lemon stood up immediately and raced to the bottom of the Christmas tree where the gifts were stacked. She handed them all out to her friends, specific wrapping paper for every individual. 

 

“Kitties,” Hiro said as he inspected his wrapping paper. “Respect.”

 

Karmi looked away awkwardly as Honey Lemon gave her her gift. She said thank you very quietly and pulled the tissue paper with little lab flasks out of the bag. 

 

“By the way,” Wasabi butted in. “That gift is from all of us, Karmi.”

 

She gave him a strange look as she continued to take out the paper. Before she could even look in the bag, the song that was playing changed. 

 

I just want you for my own

 

Everyone stood up and whooped. Honey Lemon and GoGo paired up and began to dance to the song. Hiro stood up and held his hand out to Karmi. “May I have this dance?” He joked. 

 

“You may,” she laughed and took his hand. That one time Tadashi showed him how to dance in preparation for that one event they were going to finally paid off as he pulled her up from her sitting position and twisted her close. 

 

“You a smooth dancer, Hamada?” Karmi asked as her forehead touched Hiro's. 

 

“Oh,” he twisted her out of his arms at an arm's length away. He pulled her back in and dipped her. “I am.”

 

He was vaguely aware of how everyone minus Honey Lemon and GoGo were watching as the two danced. Okay, fine. He was going to give everyone a show as he danced. 

 

As he stood up straight and brought the girl up with him. He turned again, and put a hand to her waist and the other on her shoulder. She mimicked his actions. 

 

“You are a better dancer than I expected,” Karmi praised. 

 

“Wait,” he gasped. “Are you telling me that you're Karmi is actually impressed with something that I did? Someone call a priest. We need an exorcist because she's been possessed by a demon.”

 

She hit his shoulder and backed away from there dancing position. Hiro acted like he didn't mind the absence of her body against his. “Very funny.”

 

Hiro sat back down at his spot on the floor. Karmi sat down next to him. Okay, so they weren't really that far apart now. 

 

“Have you seen your gift?” Fred looked at her excitedly. “Have you? Open it. Open it right now. Okay, I'll open it for you.”

 

Karmi snatched it as Fred reached for her bag. She pretend hissed and peered at what was inside. Her dark cheeks flushed pink as she attempted to bury her face into the bag. 

 

“What is it?” Hiro asked after seeing the expression on her face. 

 

She very slowly pulled something out. He knew what it was as soon as he saw the first red berry. 

 

Aunt Cass and the rest of the Nerd Gang gave Karmi a mistletoe. 

 

“I know just where to put it,” GoGo stood up and took the green plant out of Karmi's hands. 

 

She took it out of the girl's hands and gave it to Honey Lemon, the tallest one there who could easily put the mistletoe on the ceiling. Aunt Cass tossed her scotch tape. Honey put the tape on the plant. 

 

The mistletoe was hung over Hiro and Karmi's heads. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tomorrow <3


	20. Chapter 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The End

“We're going to leave you two alone,” Aunt Cass pushes everyone out of the cafe (where they were) and onto the stairs where they're probably still listening. 

 

They were really going to leave them alone. Standing underneath a god damn mistletoe that required something that he pretty much knew Karmi wouldn't be up for. 

 

Alexa, remind him to murder his friends and aunt when this was over. Alexa, play Scar Tissue by Red Hot Chili Peppers because he was sure he was going to have a couple of cuts in his heart when they were done here. 

 

Hiro looked at Karmi once they were alone, up at the mistletoe, and back at her. He didn't really know what to say. What is he supposed to say in a situation like this? 

 

“I gotta tell you this,” Karmi took a deep breath and closed her eyes. “I told Wasabi something and I guess he told the rest of your friends because here we are.”

 

He pushed down his feeling of wanting to be with someone and listened intently. He clung onto every word that she spoke. “What was it?”

 

Karmi said nothing as she took a step closer to him. “I-”

 

They were interrupted when Baymax popped his head in from the stairs. “Karmi messaged Wasabi about what to do with her feelings for Hiro and-”

 

He caught a glimpse of GoGo's hands yanking Baymax back. She still tried to be hidden, but he knew that they were watching them from the beginning. “Continue!” She shouted from her place on the stairs. 

 

Hiro turned back to face Karmi. Did she… Did she really? He doesn't know how to deal with stuff like this. He's inexperienced, considering he was never surrounded by people close to his age. Okay, did she like him? Like, like him like him? 

 

“You-” he tried to say, but was quickly cut off. 

 

“I didn't know that was gonna happen this is really embarrassing I am so sorry I can't believe it's happening like this I didn't know this was gonna go down I can't believe myself and I actually really like you but I don't know what to say-”

 

Hiro took this as an opportunity and went for it. He leaned in, ignoring the fact that she had been talking, and kissed Karmi. 

 

She didn't kiss back, and Hiro really hoped that was because of the shock. He thought in his head of the worse possible reasons as to why she isn't kissing him back.  

 

Maybe saying ‘I actually really like you' means something completely different to her. She could mean as a friend and he completely understood her wrong.

 

What if this didn't even mean anything to her? What if kissing her is meaningless and doesn't matter at all? She couldn't care at all, and he'd have to deal with a one sided kiss since he's pouring his heart and soul into this. 

 

When they pulled away, she lightly smacked his shoulder. “Don't interrupt me when I'm talking.”

 

But Hiro could see the smile that she was trying to hide. He couldn't help his own smile from spreading across his face. He had just kissed Karmi and she didn't throw anything at him or horribly reject him. 

 

He's ecstatic. He's jumping off of the walls in his mind. His heart is beating at least at one hundred miles an hour metaphorically. This is going well, and his adrenaline is off the charts. 

 

“I guess what I mean to say is-”

 

Yolo, Hiro thought as he cut her off again. “I like you too.”

 

“First of all, I'm going to kill you if intervene in my speaking again,” she jokingly threatened. “Second, wait what?”

 

Hiro shrugged. “It was a thought in the back of my head that I'm telling you about now.” He knew it before he leaned in. That feeling of want whenever he wanted to be with someone was because of her. 

 

She's the one who made Hiro act like an idiot whenever his mind filled up with the thought of possibly being with someone. She's the one who he thought about whenever he wanted someone. 

 

“You're seri-”

 

He risked his life when he cupped her face in his hands and kissed her again. For how young he is, he got his very limited knowledge from Tadashi, who was constantly hit on. 

 

The breath in his lungs was limited, so he made the most of the time. He stroked her cheek with his thumb, and he felt one of her hands wrap around his wrist. 

 

His lips, he felt, fit perfectly on hers. They were stacked, in a way. He was kissing her bottom lip, which was smooth and soft. Their teeth clunked at some point and their noses bumped each other a couple of times. 

 

They couldn't stay like that for very long when oxygen demanded itself. Freaking air and the will to live. They pulled apart breathless, with red cheeks and stupid smiles. 

 

“You did it again,” Karmi shook her head. “I will literally never forgive you for cutting me off. When I tell people the story of how we first kissed, I'm going to lead with your dumbass barging in.”

 

Hiro laughed and put his face on her shoulder. “I bet you will,” he looked at her. He looked at the girl who he had kissed seconds ago, who was smiling like an idiot. Her lips appeared tempting to press against again.  

 

That didn't happen when Aunt Cass and everyone else came out from their not so secret hiding spot on the stairs where they watched the whole exchange. 

 

“You guys went from strangers to not being able to stand each other to only being slightly pissed off in the other's presence to friends and now we're here,” Honey concluded. “How adorable.”

 

They both laughed as Hiro swung an arm around Karmi. “And now you can add boyfriend and girlfriend to the list if she accepts.”

 

His smooth flattery and talk is the only thing getting him through this. It was enough for Karmi, for she laughed as she nodded in response to his question. 

 

Everyone around them clapped, and Hiro made sure to thank Aunt Cass later for hiring Karmi, his girlfriend, to work at the Lucky Cat Cafe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AHHHHHH. 
> 
> I love literally everyone who read this and left a comment. I kid you not when I say that every chapter was written after midnight so I gotta go back and fix a lot of things lol. 
> 
> Being a high school student and an athlete with AP classes is the worst in terms of free time, so thank you for bearing with me and my horrible writing. 
> 
> No but honestly tho, thank you so much for reading this. I'm a sucker for character development but since I can't write for crap I tried my best okay. 
> 
> This is a horrible story with short chapters and whatever but I hope you all enjoyed the story of Hiro and Karmi from my perspective. 
> 
> Bye!!

**Author's Note:**

> My chapter titles are really uncreative whoops. 
> 
> Follow me on Tumblr - varianneedsabyamaxhug
> 
> :)


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